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Steven Winn

Steven Winn is a San Francisco based free-lance writer and critic and frequent City Arts & Lectures interviewer. His work has appeared in Art News, California, Humanities, Manhattan, Symphony Magazine and The San Francisco Chronicle.

Articles by this Author

Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
January 11, 2020
MTT Wears His Composer Hat in Meditations on Rilke
BY Steven Winn

Soprano Sasha Cooke and baritone Ryan McKinny star in the world premiere.

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Early Music/Baroque Review
December 23, 2019
Christopher Lowrey Gives a Soul-Shaking Performance With Voices of Music
BY Steven Winn

The countertenor’s stunning technique and stirring emotional delivery meld perfectly with VOM’s impeccable Baroque chops.

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Recital Review
December 17, 2019
Jonathan Biss Brings Passion and Precision to Beethoven Piano Sonatas
BY Steven Winn

Jumping in midway through the pianist’s concert series of the complete cycle feels just fine.

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Opera Review
December 8, 2019
Adler Fellows Shine a Bright Light on Opera’s Future
BY Steven Winn

Ashley Dixon and Christian Pursell stand out on a stage bursting with talent.

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Chamber Music Review
December 6, 2019
Dawn Upshaw and the Brentano Quartet Suspend Time at Herbst
BY Steven Winn

Soprano and quartet are transcendent in Schoenberg’s Quartet No. 2.

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Opera Review
November 25, 2019
Great Singing Makes for a Memorable Ermelinda
BY Steven Winn

Contralto Sara Couden’s double-role performance stands out in Ars Minerva’s latest re-creation of a forgotten opera.

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Opera Review
October 14, 2019
SF Opera’s New Figaro Sets the Mind Soaring
BY Steven Winn

Every detail of performance and staging contributes to making Michael Cavanagh’s reimagined production a feast for the ears and eyes.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
October 6, 2019
SF Symphony Hits the Stratosphere With Mozart’s “Jupiter”
BY Steven Winn

Prodigy Maria Dueñas burns through Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in her debut with the SFS.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
September 27, 2019
Stravinsky Works Raise the Roof at Davies
BY Steven Winn

MTT deftly corrals the SF Symphony, Chorus, and soloists, and cellist Oliver Herbert turns in a stellar performance of Haydn.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
September 13, 2019
MTT and SF Symphony Summon a Magisterial Mahler Sixth
BY Steven Winn

The dramatic work showcases the powerful 25-year partnership between conductor and orchestra.

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Opera Review
September 9, 2019
Pene Pati Steps In and Brings Down the House
BY Steven Winn

The local favorite fronts a powerful cast in SF Opera’s Roméo et Juliette.

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Opera Review
August 12, 2019
West Edge Opera Transfixes With Breaking the Waves
BY Steven Winn

Soprano Sara LeMesh is extraordinary in this gripping production of Missy Mazzoli’s adaptation of the Lars von Trier film.

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Early Music/Baroque Review
August 6, 2019
Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater Shines in Newly Discovered Arrangement
BY Steven Winn

American Bach Soloists perform a version of the beloved score recently discovered in Lyon.

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Opera Review
August 5, 2019
West Edge Opera’s Orfeo & Euridice Comes Alive in the Underworld
BY Steven Winn

A fresh, nonbinary take on Gluck’s opera eschews easy resolutions.

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Recital Review
July 2, 2019
Exploring the Full Range of Richard Strauss’s Songs
BY Steven Winn

Soprano Heidi Moss Erickson and pianist John Parr track the arc of the composer’s songwriting through eight decades.

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Opera Review
June 17, 2019
Everything Is Right With Rusalka
BY Steven Winn

Dvořák’s brilliant opera gets the production it deserves at San Francisco Opera.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
May 27, 2019
Violinist Vilde Frang Wrings Elgar’s Concerto Dry With S.F. Symphony
BY Steven Winn

Guest conductor Krzysztof Urbański makes the most of Grażyna Bacewicz’s 1943 Overture.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
May 14, 2019
Michael Morgan Rumbles Oakland With West Side Story
BY Steven Winn

Bernstein’s still-vibrant musical gets a thrilling account at the Paramount from the Oakland Symphony and a bevy of strong soloists and choirs.

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Opera Review
May 11, 2019
Abraham in Flames Burns Brightly at Z Space
BY Steven Winn

Raising more questions than it answers, Niloufar Talebi’s unconventional opera boasts fine performances and stylish staging.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
April 19, 2019
Simone Young Commands a Colorful Telling of Scheherazade With the S.F. Symphony
BY Steven Winn

Concertmaster Alexander Barantschik shines brightest in a bevy of glittering soloists.

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